Power crews scramble after record number of tornadoes tear through South

After sweeping through the Midwest with blinding snow, a major winter storm brought a rare white Christmas to parts of the South and set off damaging tornadoes. The Weather Channel's Jim Cantore reports.

By Tracy Connor, NBC News

Crews scrambled to restore power Wednesday after a string of Christmas tornadoes tore across the South, toppling trees, ripping off roofs, and dropping one-inch hailstones.

The National Weather Service said there were a record 34 tornadoes reported in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama on Tuesday.

A state of emergency was declared in Mississippi, where homes, roads and businesses were damaged in at least nine counties. Eight people were injured but expected to survive, officials said.

A tornado watch was issued Wednesday for the eastern Carolinas until 5:00 p.m. ET.

“Visibly, it was like a bomb has gone off at The Loop,” he wrote. “A one-way street sign was literally sawed into half. The Dauphin Island Parkway/Airport Boulevard sign was flattened. Power lines were lying on the ground.

“It's a Christmas miracle no one was killed,” he added.

Mobile’s Trinity Episcopal Church lost a large section of its roof and a wall, but officials were looking on the bright side. Hours before the tornado touched down, there were 500 people in the church for Christmas Eve services.